Hand-held electronic devices often have a flexible cable connecting the hand-held device to another, more stationary electrical device. The flexible cable that electrically and physically connects the two devices may house conductors used to carry electric power and/or communication signals. For example, a pillow speaker is commonly connected to a nurse call station and/or television via a flexible cable so that a person can operate the television, communicate with the nurse or operate other hospital room devices while confined to a hospital bed.
During normal use, the hand-held device may be pulled by the user in such a manner that force is applied to the cable sheath and/or the conductors inside the cable sheath. This application of force can weaken the cable and/or the conductors inside the cable and cause premature failure. To help prevent this failure mode, a strain relief device is commonly used.
The hand-held device is commonly of a rigid nature and the strain relief device is of a semi-rigid nature. The semi-rigid strain relief device provides a transition path from the rigid hand-held device to the flexible cable itself. When force is applied to the cable, the strain relief device may be caused to flex, thereby transferring some of the force to the rigid hand-held device. In this manner, the force on the cable is transferred over the length of the strain relief device rather than through a single point as it would be with no strain relief device. In addition, by providing this resistive force, the strain relief may also make the user aware of the fact that he or she may be on the verge of applying too much force, thereby giving the user an opportunity to take corrective action to prevent failure.
Prior art strain relief devices are typically made from a material that is more rigid than the cable and less rigid than the device housing. A conventional manufacturing process includes permanently “overmolding” the strain relief device onto the cable. In many instances, the strain relief device is thicker near the device housing and less thick where the cable exits the strain relief device distally from the device housing. This allows the strain relief to be less flexible near the device housing and more flexible away from the housing.